Building a relationship with God is the most important lesson to be learned. Only when we have a proper relationship with God can we be moved in prayer, gain illumination when reading God’s words, and obtain God’s enlightenment and guidance in all things. Clearly, it’s critical for us to establish a normal relationship with God. Here are 3 ways to keep a normal relationship with God.

First, Practice quieting our heart before God.

The Lord Jesus said: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). From this verse, we know that if we want to establish a normal relationship with God, we should pray to God with a sincere heart, speaking words within the heart. When we honestly tell our actual condition and practical difficulties to God and reflect on ourselves before Him, we could be moved by the Holy Spirit and cause genuine remorse. In this way, we could quiet down before God. For example, you pray, “Oh God! I see many brothers and sisters sincerely expending themselves for You. But my stature is too small. I have so much baggage—my job, family, and future—that I cannot expend myself for You. I don’t know how to let go of my baggage. May You enlighten me and enable me to understand Your will and requirements. May You give me faith and strength so that I can obey Your orchestration and arrangement.” When you pray in this way, you are quiet before God. As God sees you pray honestly, the Holy Spirit would work in you, and then you will establish a normal relationship with God. But if we don’t open our heart to God when kneeling in prayer, but just say a few words carelessly and perfunctorily, even if we seem quite reverent from the outside, this is not being quiet before God and such prayer can’t be accepted by God. Besides, if we bring our demands and desires to make an exchange into prayers, saying unreasonable words, such prayers are not offered with a quiet heart before God and couldn’t be accepted by God.

Apart from quieting the heart before God when praying, we also need to be quiet before God and touch the Spirit of God with our heart when we read the Bible and contemplate God’s words. When we have true communion with God and live before God, we would be touched by the Holy Spirit and gain the work of the Holy Spirit. Regardless of what we are doing, whether we are praying, or working, or taking a walk, we should practice being quiet before God at any moment. As long as we constantly practice in this way, we could keep a normal relationship with God.

Second, give our heart to God and allow God to take over in all things, and obey God’s sovereignty and arrangements.

Giving our heart to God means to entrust our jobs, family, and life to God. No matter what happens to us, we should seek and pray to God, and then act according to His will and requirements. In addition, we should immerse ourselves in God’s work and spend ourselves for Him, acting according to His words in everything and obeying His orchestration and arrangement without our own choices. This is meant by giving the heart to God. Suppose we face the matter of children’s marriage. We pray, “Oh Lord! My child is given by You. Now, he has reached the married age. Rather than rely on myself to make plans for his marriage, I’m willing to entrust this matter to you and obey Your orchestration and arrangement. I believe what You arrange is the best.” After we make such a prayer, we should obey God’s orchestration instead of acting according to our own desire. If we say with mouth that we’re willing to submit to God’s orchestration and arrangement, but are full of complaints and even deny, judge, and blaspheme God when trials befall us, this isn’t giving our heart to God. As the Lord Jesus said: “This people draws near to me with their mouth, and honors me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:8-9). From the Lord’s words, we can see that God doesn’t like us honors Him with our lips but wants us to give our heart entirely to Him and give Him sovereignty in everything. Just take the three friends of Daniel as an example. When facing the danger of being thrown into a blazing furnace, they would rather die than worship idols (See Daniel 3:17-18). They had no choices of their own but made God their sovereign and satisfied God wholeheartedly; this is truly giving the heart to God.

Third, learn to seek and practice the truth in all things.

No matter who has said something, even if the person is someone with low status or we most look down on, as long as what he says accords with the truth, we should submit and accept it. But if what he said doesn’t conform to the truth, we shouldn’t accept it no matter how high his position is or how great his influence is. When we find that the co-workers have jealous disputes with each other, steal offerings, or do something harmful to the profit of the church, we shouldn’t turn a blind eye to these things, or act like it has nothing to do with ourselves, nor should we be ruled by status and power. Instead, we should stand resolutely on God’s side and safeguard the interests of the church. Only when we act in these ways, could we become those who are truly obedient to the truth. Now, in the church, there are many people worshiping knowledge and status, blindly listening to and obeying whatever the pastors and elders say. Their such behaviors just reminded me of the Israelites. At that time, the Israelites blindly adored the chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees; deceived by them, they followed them in resisting the Lord Jesus, and nailed the Lord Jesus to the cross, suffering God’s punishment and curse. In contrast, people like Peter, John, Matthew and Philip saw the work and word of the Lord Jesus were full of authority and power and came from God, and thus followed Him without being bound by the Pharisees; they were those who truly obeyed God and gained God’s salvation. Just as the Bible says, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).

I believe as long as you practice according to these four ways, you could establish a normal relationship with God, Have you grasped these principles and started putting them into practice?

Read more on our Spiritual Growth page, or click on the related articles below.

• I Am Too Busy to Stay Close to God. What Should I Do?

• Four Tips for Helping Us Establish a Proper Relationship With God